Establishing a culture of learning happens sooner when students have an opportunity to have fun and when teachers trust and respect students enough to let them have moments of fun and levity. Creating an epic hero demonstrates a teachers fun-loving side to students. They often become more willing to attempt challenging tasks when we give them an unexpected opportunity to get creative in English.

There's a long tradition of artistic expression in classical texts anyway. During the Middle Ages, monks created illuminated texts, William Blake embellished his poetry with artwork, and the classic Greek and Roman epics are filled with ekphrasis, the expression of art in literature, such as Virgil's description of the Shield of Aeneas in The Aeneid.

Art Requires Critical Thinking

Trust and Respect: Art Requires Critical Thinking

"A Hero Ain't Nothing but a Sandwich": Imagining and Inventing an "Epic" Hero

"A Hero Ain't Nothing but a Sandwich": Imagining and Inventing an "Epic" Hero

Unit 6: We Need a Hero: The Anglo-Saxon Epic "Beowulf"
Lesson 2 of 7

Objective: SWBAT use the hero monomyth as inspiration for creating an "epic" hero project.

The lessons in this unit showcase my pedagogic philosophy that students learn best when they are actively engaged. Traditionally, teachers approach epic poetry, such as Beowulf, much as we teach novels and short stories: Students read the text, analyze and discuss it, take quizzes and tests, and write a paper. What happens when we teach the epic through performance pedagogy and pay homage to the oral tradition?

The lessons in this unit emphasize fresh approaches to literary analysis. This lesson is part of a larger unit on the Epic of Beowulf. In its original context, this is

Lesson 2 in the Epic of Beowulf.

In this lesson, students

learn about the classic hero monomyth envisioned by Joseph Campbell and

Resources (1)

Resources

Once students realize they already know many hero tales, they begin to see the connection between the epic tale of Beowulf and the pop culture they love.

Using this short video from TED beautifully bridges the classic hero monomyth envisioned by Joseph Campbell to contemporary YA hero tales.

Once students watch the video, I give them a definition of archetype, which the video mentions: a recurring pattern in literature. An archetype can be a story pattern, such as the hero journey. It can be a recurring image, such as a color; it can be a character type or an image.

Today has been one filled with detailed information. To make these complicated ideas more relevant to students, I assign the epic hero project and have included the monomyth image and steps with it just to see to what extent students use this new information in imagining their "epic heroes." Epic Hero Project.

The students' epic heroes are as unique and varied as they are. In the back of the classroom is a poster from the Virtues Project. Several students used it as inspiration and created heroes that embody the characteristics of a virtuous person: A Hero Called Cookie is one example of a virtuous hero.